1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices used in welding and, more particularly, to a device for transferring heat generated by an electron beam to a brazing metal during an election beam welding operation.
2. Related Art
Brazing is a method of joining components together with the use of a melted brazing alloy. The brazing alloy must have a lower melting temperature than any of the components. There are several different methods used to braze components together. One conventional method includes placing the components and the brazing metal in a furnace. However, the furnace method requires the use of enough energy to heat the entire structure, as opposed to just the areas being brazed. Another conventional method includes applying localized heat to the area being brazed by a gas torch or induction heating. This method can only be used with metals which do not produce a surface oxidation layer.
Metals which produce surface oxidation layers, such as Zircaloy and the high melting point refractory metals, require the use of an inert atmosphere or a vacuum to prevent oxidation. In a conventional method, an electron beam weld box is used. The weld box creates a vacuum and the electron beam is used as the localized heat source. With this method, it is difficult to control heating when applying the electron beam directly to the work piece, even if the beam is defocused to reduce the energy density.
Therefore, there exists a need in the art for a brazing device which can locally apply a controlled amount of heat to a selected area within a vacuum or inert environment.